Semantic markers indicate a change of direction.  Without semantic markers the reader infers that more of the same will follow. Thus, 'The second sentence has more momentum' would normally be followed by an amplification of this idea, for example 'It propels the reader forward by the use of a semantic marker at the beginning.' 'Because', therefore, indicates a change of direction from amplification to causality. 'Thus' indicates a change from cause to effect. Without it the reader would expect another cause. 'Moreover' indicates a change of direction from effect back to another cause which is signalled by 'because'. 'In contrast' indicates the sharpest change of direction, onto an analysis of a different sentence.

Semantic markers are therefore extremely important as tools to increase coherence and momentum. They should, however, only be used when necessary, that is when a change of direction occurs.

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Exercises in Semantic Marking

Look at the pairs of sentences below. Decide whether a semantic marker is needed, and if so which and where.

  1. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) are good examples of these practical, universally acclaimed elements of the UN system. They represent what is best in international co-operation.

    2. Click here for the answer.

  2. Since 1918, Glasgow has been characterised by depopulation, urban decay and industrial decline. Over the same period Thessaloniki has experienced rapid urban expansion, population growth and industrialisation.

    3. Click here for the answer.

  3. A fifth of Russia’s total strategic nuclear arsenal are at present based in the area. This could rise to nearly half within ten years.

    4. Click here for the answer.

     

  4. There is great doubt over the usefulness of cultural tourism as a theoretical term. Its usefulness as means of attracting visitors to urban sites seems almost unquestioned by local and national policy makers.

    5. Click here for the answer.

     

  5. The authorities that decide on entitlement to services are usually unaware of the extent and significance of the disabilities in Asperger's Syndrome (AS). Active participation on the part of the clinician, together with parents and possibly an advocate, is needed to forcefully pursue the patient's eligibility for services.

    6. Click here for the answer.

     

  6. The international public service--the staff of the United Nations system--has not been fairly judged. Many of its members have been selfless servants of all the member states of the United Nations and have devoted their lives to furthering the aims of the Charter.

    7. Click here for the answer.

     

  7. Edinburgh is smaller and in reality has fewer permanent cultural resources. Its huge international festival each autumn and its administrative and political significance have meant that it has enjoyed a much better image than Glasgow.

    8. Click here for the answer.

     

  8. The collapse of the WP and dissolution of the Soviet Union forced Russia to withdraw from Central and Eastern Europe. Russia lost its essential allies and access to ports, and shipyards, barracks, dry docks and much more along the southern and western littoral once used by the Russian fleet.

    9. Click here for the answer.

     

  9. Labels are necessary in order to secure services and guarantee a level of sophistication in addressing the child's needs. The assignment of a label should be done in a thoughtful way, so as to minimise stigmatisation and avoid unwarranted assumptions.

    10. Click here for the answer.

     

  10. The most obvious tourist commodity that cities can offer the tourist is culture, in other words art galleries, museums, historic buildings, concert halls etc. This has led to a policy of cultural tourism promotion in many post-industrial cities in order to aid the process of regeneration.

    11. Click here for the answer.

     

    Semantic Inflation

    One of the most common mistakes is to use markers of addition - Moreover, Furthermore, etc - too much, particularly at the beginning of paragraphs. This is unnecessary because the very fact that a new paragraph has started indicates that an additional point will be made.

    This mistake is often symptomatic of a lack of a clear line of argument. The essay is perhaps nothing more than a list of points of the 'and-another-important-thing-is' type.

    Similarly, the overuse of markers of addition within paragraphs may be an attempt to create coherence from a list. Remember the incoherent list paragraph about Hegel:

    Hegel has been immensely influential, not least for bequeathing the dialectic and the division of history into a few great epochs to Marx. He was the son of a tax official in Stuttgart. While at the theological seminary at Tubingen, he became interested in the works of Rousseau and Kant. His Lectures on the Philosophy of History outline the developmental pattern of world history. He was worried by class divisions but did not see them as unbridgeable.

    A student redrafting this might be tempted to slip in a few markers to try to disguise the real problem:

    Hegel has been immensely influential, not least for bequeathing the dialectic and the division of history into a few great epochs to Marx. He was the son of a tax official in Stuttgart. Moreover, while at the theological seminary at Tubingen, he became interested in the works of Rousseau and Kant. Furthermore, his Lectures on the Philosophy of History outline the developmental pattern of world history. In addition, he was worried by class divisions but did not see them as unbridgeable.

    This is simply papering over the cracks when a new wall needs to be built.

    Having reached this point in the course, you should now have the knowledge and most of the fundamental academic writing skills necessary to do the rebuilding. Click here to move on to the next section: how to incorporate the work of others.

     

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    © 2002 Martin Paterson